A Thin Line
by Flames.xtox.dust
Summary: They had both lost many people in their lives - each getting wounded in the process. When they team up to fight for the other's right, they realize their potential together. Yet, he isn't able to bring himself to love her until she leaves for good.
1. New Beginnings for everyone

Hermione Jean Granger, 27 years of age, was already a successful healer working at St. Mungo's as a magical equivalent to an obstetrician. Her job was to deliver babies and she loved every moment of it. A new mother glowing as she looked into the eyes of her infant: Priceless. It was the best part of her job and someday, whenever that came, she hoped that she would look as beautiful and radiant as a mother when she held her beauty for the first time. Although at this point, it seemed unlikely. Hermione was having trouble with finding a suitable partner and her instincts told her not to rush into anything- like she had many years ago at Hogwarts... but that was a different story.

Hermione's philosophy of love was that it never failed. It might have its ups and downs, but if it's true love, then it will find a way to work out. And of course, if it doesn't, then it was never love to begin with.

She might not have had someone to love romantically, but her friends supported her through everything and she loved them unconditionally for that. One of her best friends, Harry Potter, or better known as "The Boy-Who-Lived", was engaged to Ginevra Weasley, Hermione's best friend since her second year at Hogwarts. The two women were inseparable and because of their strong friendship, Hermione was pronounced her Maid of Honor. To be honest, Ginny and Harry were the perfect couple for one arguments would sometimes threaten to start another World War (Ginny always needed to throw a few dozen hexes at Harry before she calmed down) but in the end, their love was enough to suffice their relationship.

The third member of the original 'Golden Trio' was Ronald Weasley. Through his outgoing nature he had finally managed to court Lavender Brown into marrying him. They were both content with their marriage and soon were blessed with a child which they were expecting in the early days of April; Hermione was their healer. Ron and Harry worked together at the Ministry of Magic as aurors - both were remarkable at their jobs.

The war and Voldemort's defeat had changed each of them and because of the number of people they had lost in their lives, they made sure to stay extra close with one another; being afraid of lose anyone else. And because of this, all five of them had a strange bond that was practically impossible to break.

* * *

**Christmas eve**

"Draco, darling, don't forget that we need to buy new dress robes for your mother's Christmas party tomorrow night," said a very pregnant Pansy Parkinson.

Draco sighed exasperatedly. This was the fifth time his wife had reminded him of that. Pregnant women. He rolled his eyes.

"Yes, sweetheart. I remember. You told me that this morning," Draco replied with a smile.

"Oh sorry. I must've forgotten. I seem to be doing that a lot," Pansy said, as a slight red tint began showing on her cheeks. "I don't know. I'm so exhausted that I don't even want to shop. Do you know how rare that is for me?" she asked jokingly, sitting down on their bed. Despite the attempt at humor, even Draco could tell something was wrong.

"That's alright. We can get one of the house elves to go get them for us," Draco said reassuringly. He sat down beside Pansy and laid his hand on her forehead, alarmed by the hot touch. "I just want you to lay down and rest. I'll take care of everything, hm?"

"God, I love you so much... " Pansy murmured as she drifted off. Draco smiled and kissed her sweaty forehead.

_I need to take her to see a healer, _he thought to himself.

Draco Malfoy, a former Slytherin at Hogwarts had married his best friend, Pansy Parkinson. Key words: _best friend. _Of course, beneath all of it, he actually did love her and their unborn child was a symbol of it but it wasn't what he thought _real _love would feel like. The kind of sentimental love that he saw in muggle movies was what he had been hoping for in his love life... but fate had a different way of working itself out.

Of course, Draco had learned to convince himself that marrying Pansy was what was right for both of them.

After Draco's father, Lucius Malfoy, was killed by Voldemort, Draco was left feeling cold. His dark mark had caused many of his friends to be afraid of him and slowly it had grown to hate towards him. The only one who didn't neglect him in such a way was Pansy and he found himself slowly falling for her charismatic ways. Some things led to others and he had asked for her hand in marriage and she had accepted. They were both at ease, their worries were limited and they enjoyed each other's company. Soon, after an intimate night, Pansy had become pregnant and here they were.

Draco had really wanted a baby boy to carry out the Malfoy name. He couldn't imagine the disapproval of his relatives if it was otherwise.

A groan of pain snapped him back to life as he saw Pansy shifting on the bed. Her face was distorted with pain. She was always complaining about pains in her stomach and abdomen area... and it scared him. _Maybe it's just one of those abnormal pregnancy symptoms, _he thought, making a mental note to ask his mother.

Oh bloody hell. Mother. Christmas party. Dress robes, he'd almost forgot. Carefully closing the door behind him, Draco stepped into the hallway.

"Dobble!" Draco yelled, calling to one of his house elves. No less than a second later, a weird-looking creature apparated into the living room.

"Yes master?" it asked timidly.

"Go down to Diagon alley and get mine and Pansy's dress robes for my mother's Christmas party tomorrow. You know each of our sizes so make sure they're properly fitted. Is that clear?"

"Like a bell, master," Dobble replied and apparated instantly.

_Ugh, _Draco was not in the mood for Christmas festivities. Whatever happened to a quiet and peaceful evening? Instead he needed to spend tomorrow night with his mother's Mudblood friends. Don't take him wrong - he wasn't a prejudiced arse as he once had been when his father was alive- but he hated being associated with them.

Sitting down at his kitchen table, he pulled out several files that he needed to finish for work. Next week, he and Blaise had an assignment to complete with Pot-Head and Weasel, his nicknames for the two boys he had bullied at Hogwarts.

Draco rolled his eyes. He once again wondered why he had chosen to become an auror.


	2. No hot chocolate?

**Christmas day**

"_Waaake up! It's Christmas!" _Sang the alarm clock that Hermione had bought from a vendor at Diagon Alley. Waking up startled, Hermione glared at the alarm clock before turning it off.

"Stupid magical contraptions," she muttered under her breath as she got up and straightened her bedsheets using a spell she had learned years ago. She slipped her feet into her warm and furry slippers and trudged to the bathroom.

After a warm shower, Hermione chose some comfortable muggle clothes to wear.

When she was half done her Honey Nut Cheerios, her favorite muggle cereal, there were two loud _craaaacks _and Ginny and Harry Potter apparated into her small apartment.

"Merry Christmas Hermione!" Harry and Ginny yelled out, pulling Hermione into a bear hug. Hermione, almost suffocated by them, returned the gesture.

"Yes, yes. It's what got me up in the morning," she said pointing to her alarm clock as her friends gave her an amused smile. "Merry Christmas! What are you guys doing here this early? It's... " Hermione glanced at her watch, "oh...12:30.. well, I guess I must've slept in late."

Harry nodded. "Yup, and we just wanted to be the first to barge into your home with all the Christmas spirit we could sum up." Ginny and Harry exchanged a quick grin. "By the way, you're coming to the Burrow tonight, right?"

Hermione nodded." What time does Molly want us to be there by?"

"Mum said about 7, but you know her... she's hinting that you get there earlier," Ginny responded with a smirk.

"Of course," Hermione said, grinning. "So I guess we'll exchange presents then?"

Ginny nodded. "We better go now. Oh, and before I forget to ask you, will you come and help me find a wedding dress? Mum and Lavender are also coming. We'll get the bridesmaid dresses too."

Hermione smiled, "I can't believe you even had to ask. Just let me know when you want to go and it'll be alright with me."

"Great. See you tonight," Ginny said. Harry waved goodbye and the two of them left.

_Well that was interesting. Maybe I'll go do some light reading. _Hermione smiled, approving her idea with a slight nod.

* * *

It was almost 6:30 and Hermione still wasn't dressed for the dinner at the Burrow.

After reading another paragraph of _Hogwarts: A History_, she put the book down and changed into her new purple dress. It had spaghetti straps and flowed down at her waist. It was a simple dress which she paired with black stilettos and some jewelry. Overall, it took her about 20 minutes to get ready and another 15 to tame her bushy hair.

She picked up the bag of presents and flooed herself to the Burrow.

* * *

Tension. Tension. Tension. He had no idea what to do about the case his crazy boss had given him. Draco silently screamed. _Tap. Tap. Tap. _His quill hit the table over and over again.

He heard the door open and Pansy walked in.

"Draco! What are you doing? You should be getting dressed! The party starts in a hour and you know how your mother gets when we don't arrive on time. Move your lazy arse!" Pansy yelled, having one of her regular pregnancy mood swings.

Now was so not the time.

"Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP._ Please._ I've dealt with your mood swings for 7 months! I know you're having one of your daily dramas but seriously lady, calm the bloody hell down! " Draco snapped.

_Oops. You idiot! _He mentally cursed himself for taking his frustration out on his wife as he watched her eyes fill with tears.

"I didn't mean that, Pansy...I.." Draco began apologizing before being interrupted.

"Go to hell, Draco," Pansy said, throwing his robes on their bed and turning to leave the room. Before she could, Draco reached for her hand to stop her.

"Let go of my hand. I promise I won't bother you again. Go get dressed." Pansy said bitterly. Traces of hurt in her voice. She pulled her hand from his and walked out the door.

_Wow, he was such a screw up. Oh hell, now he felt guilty. Damn the world. Hopefully she'll forget and those bloody mood swings of hers will actually be useful. In the meantime... he might as well get ready._

_

* * *

_

"Merry Christmas, lovely people!" Hermione called out cheerily as she brushed off any last traces of ash on her dress. The Floo was definitely not her favorite way of traveling. She noticed the beautiful decorations on the tree and all around the house - 's doings, of course.

"Goodness me, Hermione! You look gorgeous!" said, embracing Hermione.

Hermione smiled, "Thank you Molly! You look great too!"

"Is there anything I can do to help with dinner?" she asked.

"No dear. Just relax. I think Ron and Harry are upstairs... and Ginny and Lavender are sitting on the porch. They're probably freezing, why don't you call them inside and we'll set the table for dinner?"

"Sure. Aren't the other boys coming? What happened to Fred, George, Bill, Percy and Charlie?"

"Not this year. Each of them had some work to take care of. A real pity," Molly said with a shake of her head.

"Hermione! Merry Christmas!" a voice cheered. Hermione turned around and saw Arthur Weasley come through the front door almost completely covered with snow.

"Merry Christmas, Arthur!" Hermione greeted, hugging her father-like figure.

"I'm so glad you made it. Or else dinner would have been quite lonesome since most of our kids are missing!" Arthur joked.

The Weasleys and Hermione exchanged some more small talk before Hermione headed outside to see her girls.

* * *

"Why does it look like you two live on separate planets? What did you do? Did I not teach you to not mess around with women especially if they're in Pansy's state?" Narcissa scolded her son when she saw that he and Pansy were barely communicating.

"Mother, please. Not you too. Do you know how difficult she can be? I mean, sure, I love her but when she knows I'm working... the woman needs to relax and not be annyoing," a stubborn Draco replied.

"Men. They don't get it. She's pregnant, for Merlin's sake. Apologize to her, Draco. The poor child is worn out."

"Fine, mother," Draco said, hesitatingly walking in Pansy's direction.

"Pansy..." he began.

"Sod off, Draco," Pansy said, turning away and walking in the opposite direction.

_Ah, well... at least he tried right? She'll get over it. Now... he just needed to get away from mother's glares._

_

* * *

_

As the girls were secretly giggling and sharing new stories, Harry and Ron crept up behind them.

"What are you girls doing?" They said as Hermione, Ginny and Lavender jumped at their voices.

They giggled and replied with a quick shake of their heads.

Harry smirked, "Sure. Come inside, dinner's ready."

The five best friends made their way inside to the dining table where there was a feast prepared for a family of 50.

"Molly, how are we going to eat all of this?" Lavender asked, looking around in amazement.

Molly chuckled, "Oh don't worry about that. We have enough men here who eat like pigs."

"Hey!" replied Harry and Arthur. The women laughed.

"Let's eat already! I'm starving!" Ron cried out, completely oblivious to his mother's previous comment.

Molly winked at Lavender. "You see what I mean?"

* * *

"Oh, don't worry about it darling. Draco is just being a male. If I didn't know better, I would've said that _he _was an emotional pregnant woman," Narcissa Malfoy said, placing her hand on her daughter-in-law's shoulder.

"I know. I guess I'm a little stressed out too and I've been bothering him a lot when he's busy... But he's never snapped at me before and I don't know. Sometimes it feels like he's questioning our relationship," Pansy replied with a sigh.

"That's not true, Pansy. You know that. Just let him be. He'll come to his senses eventually and if he doesn't, then I give you permission to hit him on the head with his broomstick," Narcissa joked to lighten the mood.

Pansy laughed. "I just might take you up on that offer."

Narcissa and Pansy continued walking around the Malfoy Manor, chatting with old friends and being introduced to new ones.

Draco saw Pansy talking to Blaise and laughing. _Now might be a good time to apologize. _He started walking towards them. Looking at his feet, he rehearsed a few apologies before glancing back at Pansy.

He froze in his step as Pansy's broad smile disappeared and she looked to be in severe pain as she held her stomach.

Draco came back to his senses and ran towards her, not knowing how to react.

"Pansy, are you alright?" Draco asked calmly, trying to keep his voice even.

"Draco, my water broke," Pansy whimpered as the pain increased.

"WHAT? How is that possible? You're not due for another 2 months!" Draco yelled in confusion.

Pansy winced. "I don't know, you prat! Do something!" Pansy screamed out as another contraction cut her words short.

_What the hell! What was he going to do? Why did that child have to come now? Out of the blue?_

"Draco.." was the last word out of Pansy's mouth before she fainted. Draco caught her before she reached the ground.

All of a sudden, his mother appeared at his side, helping him to support the unconscious witch.

"Take her to 's, Draco. NOW!" Narcissa ordered.

Bewildered, Draco took out his wand and apparated them to the lobby of the wizard hospital, trying to concentrate so that he wouldn't splinch either of them.

Getting a better grip on Pansy, he walked to the front desk.

"Can I help you, Sir?" a middle-aged women working at the desk asked.

"Yes! Obviously! My wife is in labour and she's unconscious. I need a healer!" Draco yelled, as two nurses levitated Pansy onto a stretcher.

"I'm sorry, Sir. You'll have to wait. Right now, there aren't any healers available to deliver the baby," the secretary replied.

"Then _GET _a bloody healer!" Draco snarled threateningly as the secretary winced.

"Please relax, Mr. Malfoy. I will owl another healer to come in. It is, afterall, Christmas so you'll have to be patient."

"The baby isn't going to wait for your stupid arse of a healer to get here! It's already two months early!" Draco yelled impatiently.

"Mr. Malfoy, please have a seat in the waiting room or we'll have to ask you to leave," the secretary warned.

Draco glared at her again before finding a chair to sit in. He rest his head in his hands and sighed.

Today was just getting better and better.

* * *

"Awww! This is the cutest present ever, Hermione! Thank you so much!" Lavender gushed, giving Hermione her millionth hug of the day.

"Well, that's the last of the presents. Who's up for some hot chocolate?" Molly asked.

A chorus of "me"s called out.

"Hey, does anyone hear that tapping noise?" Harry asked looking in the direction of the window.

Ginny walked to the window where there was an owl trying to find its way inside. She opened the window to let a small, gray owl into the house. Attached to its leg was a note addressed to _Healer Hermione Granger. _

"Who's this little bird for," Hermione asked, feeding the owl a small treat.

"Actually, you," Ginny handed her the note.

_Miss. Granger, _

_An emergency situation has come forth. We need you to report to the hospital immediately as there are no other doctors available. _

_Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused._

_St. Mungo's_

"Well... it looks like I won't be staying for hot chocolate," Hermione said, disappointed.

"What? How come? What does the note say?" Ron asked with a frown.

"There's some emergency and I need to go. They're short of healers... probably some witch is in labour or something. I'll see you all later."

After a few quick hugs and "sorry"s, Hermione went back to her apartment to change into her uniform. Her instincts told her that this was going to be a long night.


	3. Fates Collide

Hermione walked to the receptionist's desk.

"Susan, I was called in for an emergency. What happened?" She asked.

"Ma'am, Mrs. Pansy Malfoy is in labour and she's unconscious... But there's something odd about the entire situation. We need to get the baby out as soon as we can," the receptionist replied.

Both of them were sprinting to Pansy's ward as Susan explained the big picture to her.

"She's 7 months pregnant but it looks like the baby doesn't want to wait. Right now, we're running some tests to check how far has dilated. We'll need to get the baby out ourselves since the mother is in no state to do so."

Hermione nodded. She was too busy evaluating what needed to be done that she didn't realize that she missed an important fact.

"Wait a second... did you say Pansy Malfoy? As in Draco Malfoy's wife?" Hermione asked curiously as she thought back to the details Susan had given her.

"Yes, he's waiting out in the lobby. Hot temper, that man has," Susan said with a roll of her eyes.

"Sounds like the Malfoy I knew and loved," Hermione winked at Susan as they walked into Pansy's room. Hermione said a spell with the correct hand movements of her wand to see the baby inside the patient's stomach.

As Hermione studied the movements in front of her, her eyes widened.

"This isn't looking good, Susan. Please bring me vials of healing potions immediately!" Hermione demanded, not taking the risk of glancing away from the ultrasound of the delicate unborn baby.

* * *

One hour. He had been sitting on this wretched chair for a whole damn hour. He was furious. _Couldn't they get anyone other than freaking Hermione Muggleborn Granger to come in? _Draco really didn't want her, "the smartest witch in their year", to deliver his kid. Even Merlin knew how much he despised that woman.

And on top of that, he had to keep sitting on this wretched, uncomfortable chair, until someone told him what the hell was going on.

"Draco, is Pansy all right?" Narcissa asked her son with a concerned look as she sat down beside him.

"I don't know. These bloody healers haven't said a word," Draco growled.

Narcissa placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder only to have Draco angrily nudge it off.

"Control yourself, Draco. Someday your temper is going to be the end of you," his mother warned him as she stood up and moved to a chair away from her son.

Draco sighed. _Annnnd he screwed up once again._

_

* * *

_

_No, no, no, no._ This wasn't what was supposed to be happening. Pansy was falling into a more critical condition as the minutes ticked by and there was nothing Hermione could do to save her.

A few more healers were called in and each of them did their part to try to stop, what seemed like, internal bleeding. From each spell to every healing potion - nothing made a difference.

The usually confident witch now felt helpless. She had to watch one of her former classmates (a Slytherin as she might be...) - literally - bleed her insides out. _Oh God. _

"Miss. Granger," one of the other healers said, looking at the monitors grimly. "We sent some of the reports and observations to the Ministry. They suspect that a Death Eater may have cursed Mrs. Malfoy. This sort of dark magic is almost impossible to perfect and there is no spell reverse it. Ironically enough, we were able to save the baby, except it's so fragile that it seems highly unlikely that it'll survive more than 24 hours."

"Don't say that," Hermione winced. "The Ministry got the report already?"

The healer nodded, "They're sending people to investigate tomorrow."

All at once, every monitor in the room started beeping. Hermione rushed by Pansy's side, trying her luck again to revive her. It was complete chaos.

The racket hushed when all she could hear was a faint hum made by the single, straight line shown on the moniter's screen.

"We lost her," Hermione whispered.

* * *

For the first time since they had been waiting, Narcissa and Draco made eye contact when they saw two nurses rush into Pansy's ward. Both had a nervous look on their faces.

"Everything will be okay, right?" Narcissa asked worriedly.

"I'm sure everything is fine. Maybe Pansy had a roommate who wasn't doing so well," Draco guessed, hiding his concern.

His mother nodded, not quite buying it.

They waited some more. It was almost agonizing for Draco, not knowing what was going on. His wife in the hands of stupid Granger- Pothead's smartass dog. He wanted to scream out loud. This was more than he could take.

Hermione walked out of Pansy's room with a sullen look upon her face.

_The She-Devil herself. _Draco thought, standing up from his chair.

The former Slytherin and Gryffindor stood face to face. Hermione almost an entire head shorter than Draco's strongly built body. But it was something about Hermione's facial expression that caused Draco's stomach to knot and he knew he needed to sit back down.

"Well...?" Narcissa asked, demanding an answer.

"I think you might want to have a seat, Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione began, as she watched the elderly witches' mouth turn into a frown.

"We're really sorry. We weren't able to save Pansy," Hermione said, trying to keep her composure together.

Narcissa's eyes began watering and she started to weep.

"Wha-what exactly do you mean? What the hell happened?" Draco yelled, not quite able to comprehend what he had just heard.

"Pansy was cursed, Draco. We did everything we could to reverse the spell but it was impossible. She was bleeding internally, and we tried stopping it but the curse... it was too powerful. "

Draco angrily brushed away the stray tear falling down his left cheek.

"So you just let her _die?_" He asked.

"There was nothing we could've done for her. The Ministry suspects a Death Eater used dark magic on Pansy. The curse was irreversible," Hermione said.

Narcissa spoke up, after listening to the evening's events, "What happened to the child?"

_Merlin. _"He's alright, at least?" Draco asked with pleading eyes.

"The baby is in critical condition. We want to keep _her _for a few more days to monitor her progress," Hermione said, hoping that the baby will give the Malfoys some happiness despite their future troubles.

Draco's blood grew colder as his mind evaluated the small pieces of information the witch was giving him. His mouth shaped into a rigid line. Neither woman noticed.

"Thank the Lord. Is it possible for us to go see them?" Narcissa asked, trying to control her tears.

Hermione nodded. "You can go into her room. A healer will help you," she said sympathetically, gently pulling the woman into a hug. "I'm so sorry for your loss."

Hermione might not have been fond of the woman, but she had helped her and her friends escape her sister's tight grip... and for that, Hermione felt that the smallest gestures could help the Malfoy woman through the pain.

Narcissa forced a smile, "Me too." She walked to the door where her late daughter-in-law and newborn granddaughter lay. She paused a moment before going inside.

Hermione was about to follow her but she felt a tug on her wrist. She turned back around and saw Draco letting go of her hand.

"A girl?" he asked, tears threatening to fall out.

_Don't cry in front of her, Draco. You'll lose all the dignity you've ever worked for._

"Yeah, congratulations, Malfoy. You're a father," Hermione said with a tint of sadness in her voice. He looked almost... broken? It was something she had never thought that she would see on her former enemy's face.

"Oh." Draco slouched back down onto his chair and rest his face down on the palms of his hands.

Hermione knew that he probably wouldn't want her to, but she sat on her knees in front of him and rest a comforting hand on his back.

"Don't you want to meet your daughter?" She whispered.

"Just leave," Draco muttered.


	4. Hurricanes

"She's beautiful," Narcissa whispered, holding her rosy-cheeked granddaughter for the first time. The new grandma silently cried as she held the newborn close to her chest. She cried for Pansy, she cried for this angel who would have to grow without a mother's love, she cried for Draco's broken heart and she cried for herself. How would she fix the hole in their lives? How will she find the one who did this to them? Associating the Malfoy name to Death Eaters was the worst thing Lucius could've done to their family. Now he was dead and he had left them vulnerable to the evil that remained after Voldemort had deceased.

"Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione said softly. "We need to keep your baby girl here for a few more days to make sure she stays healthy."

"I don't think I want to leave her," the older woman said, placing a kiss on the infant's small forehead.

Hermione smiled, "I don't think I would want to leave her either. You can come back first thing morning tomorrow, if you'd like."

Narcissa nodded. Still, neither woman moved, each fixed deeply in their own thoughts.

"What did you name her?"

smiled sadly. "Pansy wanted to name her Alya Scarlett Malfoy," she said, her voice getting caught in her throat.

Hermione looked at the witch as if she had just spoken in pig Latin. Inside, she felt her stomach twist and knot. There was something about that name... something... that she just couldn't put her finger on... A close connection... but it just wasn't coming to her.

All of a sudden, a quick flash... of a photograph. The glimpse was too fast; her mind wasn't able to process it at such a speed.

Alya? Where had she heard that name from?

The screaming of a child snapped her out of her thoughts as she stared at the new born wailing in Narcissa's arms.

"A-alya?" Hermione coughed to clear the roughness of her voice. "That's a lovely name," she added quietly.

Hermione's subtlety at hiding her thoughts didn't go unnoticed.

"Is everything alright, dear? You're pale," noted, putting a caring hand on Hermione's shoulder.

"I-I am fine. L-lovely name," Hermione repeated in a whisper.

Narcissa stared at Hermione for a moment before placing Alya back into the hospital's crib. The crib was enchanted to work as an incubator.

"I better leave now. I've got to arrange the funeral..." Narcissa started, clearing her throat before continuing, "...service. Take care of yourself, Hermione." The elder witch advised as she hesitantly left Alya's room.

Hermione reluctantly walked towards Alya's crib. She wasn't wailing anymore and had quietly drifted back to sleep.

Hermione felt a strange numb throb in her heart that only coaxed her into stepping closer towards the light breathing movements of the petite sleeping body. Her mind wondering how such coincidences were possible; that there would even be one between... between... _Malfoy's _baby and something... whatever that was.. that her heart yearned.

Carefully and slowly, Hermione reached for Alya's tiny fingers. The moment their skin touched, Hermione pulled away abruptly as if she had been shocked. The place where her finger came into contact with Alya's soft skin, tingled. She was so incredibly confused as she waited for some kind of clue... a memory ... to tell her why she felt this way. She hated being in the dark like that. The young woman ran out of the room.

* * *

It had been a long night for everyone, especially Draco Malfoy. He had no one to talk to; his best friend was dead and she had left him with a daughter who relied on him for every one of her needs.

He had yet to meet his gray-eyed creation that his mother couldn't stop talking about... but the chances of him doing so were as slim as him being sorted into Gryffindor. There was no way he would be able to see her without breaking down - she was a constant reminder of Pansy.

Alya Scarlett Malfoy. She was named after a constellation, "Snake". It followed suit with his entire family - each of their names being related to stars. He had to admit, though, there was a charming ring to it. It came off powerful, but buried inside the tough shell, would always be Alya - daddy's little girl. That is, if he ever came to accept her and to be honest, she was the least of his worries.

He still needed to figure out how on earth he was going to find the Death Eater that cursed Pansy. _Easier said than done, _Malfoy thought bitterly. He was an auror, for crying out loud, so why was he having so much trouble creating a list of wizards in his mind? _Because he had no bloody leads. _He couldn't think of any death eaters other than himself and Blaise Zabini who had been let out of Azkaban without probation._ Think, you stupid git, think. _Well, it doesn't have to be a death eater... that was just the Ministry's assumption... _Urgh. This was harder than he thought. _

After the second wizard war, people had been brought into Azkaban by the dozens. Not just death eaters but innocent wizards who had merely supported Voldemort. Each of them were sentenced to time in Azkaban. Some were there for months, and others, a lifetime.

Draco was lucky that he only had to endure six months of prison before he was deemed "innocent". Even those six months haunted him to this day. He had wondered every passing moment, whether or not he'd be able to see light again. He was seen as no threat to the wizarding population and was let out with too much of a hassle.

"Draco?" a voice caught him off guard as he looked around to see who it belonged to.

"What are you doing still awake?" Draco asked when he saw his mother enter the room.

"Just finished visiting our newest Malfoy. She's doing well and she's got your eyes and hair," Narcissa said smiling. The witch sat down beside Draco and ruffled his hair.

"A sickle for your thoughts," she said softly.

For a moment, neither son or mother said a word. Slowly Draco turned his eyes towards his mother. His eyes revealing more than what words could say.

"Mother," he began. "What if I'm not a good father to Alya? I have to play the role of a mum and a dad, but what if I disappoint her? What if I can't bring the wizard who did this to justice? What if I'm lonely for the rest of my life? Why are there so many 'what if's' to deal with? " he said the last part quieter.

"Draco, life is full of them. Anything can go wrong at any time and there are billions of situations that we can dream of, but when it comes to raising your daughter, you'll always have me beside you. I don't want you to become like... Lucius. He cared for you, you know, he just couldn't express it. Don't ponder on life's unrealistic scenes, just keep moving forward. The thing that did curse Pansy... well, I know that you'll do your best to capture him. Why? Because you're Draco Malfoy; you just don't give up," Narcissa said with a grin.

The two Malfoy's sat in silence as they wondered how they would get through the hurricanes that were being thrown at them.


	5. Eleven Years Old

Wow. I am so sorry for making you wait so long for this chapter. To be honest, I had to re-think my entire plot line, and because of that **I edited my other four chapters as well. ****So it would make sense to re-read those before reading the rest of the story, otherwise it won't make sense. **I also decided to change the name of the ff to _A Thin Line_ because it better describes the story than the original title did.

**Warning: **In this chapter, mature themes are implied. Also, this chapter is slightly... darker than my other "happier" chapters.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters. It all belongs to JK Rowling. Ginny's wedding dress description is inspired by _StarshakesxX_ _ ._

**Dedications:** _Lyfeee_, convinced me to continue to write and to be honest, without her encouragement (and annoying messages on msn), I probably wouldn't have continued. Thank you for being an awesome friend :)

_StarshakesxX, _Thank you for listening to my annoying banter every time I was stuck with a detail_. _You're amazing, thanks again.

_P.S.H. and V.V. , _were my faithful editors for this chapter. :) Without you guys.. this chapter would've completely sucked. Thanks for all your advice!

Enjoy, R&R!

* * *

**(A/N: Don't forget to re-read the other 4 chapters before continuing to this one)**

"Mrs Weasley, Miss. Granger is ready to see you," the receptionist announced.

"I hate when they call me that. I feel like I'm 50 or something," Lavender muttered as her husband shook his head in amusement.

With some help from Ron, Lavender stood up, trying to support herself with all the extra weight from her pregnancy. The couple followed the pudgy receptionist into a small pastel-purple colored room. All around the room, posters were hung up describing the development of babies throughout its nine months in the mother's womb.

"What do you think it'll be?" Lavender asked Ron as she sat down on the cot.

"I'm hoping for a boy. He'll be excruciatingly handsome, just like his father," Ron replied with a grin and a flex of his muscles.

Lavender laughed. "Excruciatingly handsome, huh? More like a maniacal ego head."

"I completely agree," Hermione said, walking into the room, amused.

"Hermione! You're supposed to be on my side!" Ron exclaimed, grinning.

Hermione returned the grin and hugged Ron and Lavender.

"My, my. Getting bigger, are we?" Hermione noted as she helped Lavender lie down on the cot.

"Four more months," Ron said proudly, giving Lavender's hand a light squeeze.

"I haven't seen you since Christmas. What was the emergency you had to go in for, anyway?" Lavender asked.

She still hadn't organized her thoughts from that night's events. There was something blocking her from figuring it out. It was as if her mind was keeping secrets from her.

"Oh, Pansy was in labour," Hermione said, deciding not to say too much... just in case her gut feelings were simply nothing.

Ron's face scrunched up in disgust. "Pansy _Parkinson_? One of Malfoy's followers? Who's kid was it?"

Lavender hit Ron's arm, "Ron! Can you be any more insensitive?"

Ron mumbled a 'sorry', rubbing his sore arm.

"It was... Draco's," Hermione said. Ron nodded as if saying 'I knew that all along'.

Lavender smiled. "Pansy and Draco... wow. How's Pansy doing now? Did she have a boy or girl?" Lavender questioned, her imbalance of hormones making her seem more interested than ever.

"Girl," Hermione replied wearily. _Stay calm, Hermione. Calm. Relax. _"Pansy... died giving birth."

An awkward silence settled between the trio. Lavender could literally feel the tension building in the room. There was something about Hermione's pained expression that told her to drop the subject. It was something that she'd need to discuss with her alone.

Clearing her throat, Lavender changed the subject, "You're coming dress shopping tomorrow, right?"

Hermione nodded, sending a grateful look in Lavender's direction.

"Well...let's find out the gender of the next Weasley baby, shall we?" Hermione cast a spell and rubbed a cold cream on Lavender's baby bump.

A few moments later, Hermione was grinning broadly.

"Congratulations, mummy and daddy! It's a boy!"

Ron yelled in delight, "Yeees!"

Hermione excused herself and left the excited couple in the room as she went to print out a sonogram of the unborn Weasley.

She did this for so many couples - she told them whether they would be joined by a little boy or a little girl, she met with them every few months, she delivered their kid(s) - for Merlin's sake.. so why was there a sting in her heart. Why on Earth did she feel like there was a puzzle piece that was missing? Why was she almost... jealous? These were questions that were best left alone until she was completely alone.

Hermione walked back into the room, plastering a smile on her face.

"I'll see you for another appointment next month, then? When are you announcing your big news?"

"Probably New Year's," Lavender said, beaming.

"I'll keep it on the down low then," Hermione winked.

After a few more hugs, goodbyes and promises to write, the happy, chattering couple left.

Hermione locked the door behind them with a quick _Colloportus _and slumped down to the floor burying her face into her arms. Her exhausted mind put her to sleep before she could begin to analyze.

Her dreams were unnerving. There weren't any clouds or bunnies or rainbows... there was only a dark room and him...

"_Have you ever considered joining the Dark Lord's side?" a familiar voice asked._

"_Of course not!" Hermione snapped, her eyes widening at the thought. "How can you even suggest such a thing? Harry is my best friend and I will do everything in my power to make sure he defeats the... the.. thing that destroyed his parents." _

_She saw a glimpse of anger pass through his eyes._

"_Hermione. The Lord can use your powers. He would treat you better than those ignorant boys. You'd have a life full of pleasure if you switched sides." _

"_What are you saying? That you want me to _betray _Harry? Are you out of your bloody mind? Why are we even talking about th-"_

_She was interrupted by his hand covering her mouth. "Listen here, Princess," he breathed in her ear. "We can do this the hard way or the easy way. You scream, I'll kill you. So here's an idea. Don't scream and enjoy the pain."_

_Hermione's eyes watered with fear. She had trusted him! What was he doing? This couldn't possibly be him... he was possessed. _

"_H-honey? W-what are you doing?" she asked, terrified as she felt his hands creeping lower than she would ever allow. _

"_I didn't give you permission to ask questions, Princess," his rough voice replied, biting down on her ear as she whimpered._

"_Good. Following instructions for once. Say, did your library books ever teach you how to bring pleasure to a man?"_

_She stared at him in disbelief. "P-please don't do this. I-I t-trusted you." _

"_Dark Lord's orders, sweetheart. Just enjoy it, hm?" She felt his lips caress the side of her neck as his nails pierced deeper into her thigh. _

_Hermione screamed as she felt him inside her. _

"_You'll pay for that, Princess," he smirked. _

Hermione jolted awake, sweat trickling down her forehead. It had seemed so real... it was terrifying. She couldn't figure out who the man in the dream was... his voice was so familiar... like it had been lost in the past, somewhere.

She had another flash of that photograph.

_She's eleven years, two months, three days, and 12 hours old. _

* * *

"Does this dress make me look fat?" asked a worried Ginny, trying on her millionth wedding dress of the day.

The three other women chuckled.

"No, seriously," Ginny said, nervously.

"It looks gorgeous, Ginny!" Lavender raved as Hermione and nodded in agreement.

Ginny looked doubtful as she scrutinized every inch of the dress in the mirror.

"I don't know... it's lovely... but... it's not the one," she decided finally as she changed into, yet another, gown that Molly had chosen.

Hermione suppressed a yawn. She had been here for over three hours and they hadn't even started looking for the bridesmaid dresses. She was tired, she was cranky, and Lavender kept glancing at her worriedly whenever she thought Hermione wasn't looking. All in all, it was hell.

Her eyes threatened to close... but she was afraid of having anymore nightmares. Her train of though was interrupted by a squeal of delight. Ah, at last. Ginny found the perfect dress.

To be honest, the three hours that it had taken to find the dress had been well spent. Ginny had tried on a strapless, satin gown that was a traditional ivory shade. It was floor-length with a short trail lingering behind. The dress was tightly-fitted on the top with an innocent "V" neckline as it flowed down from the waist with light netting over top of the satin material. The back of the dress was tied with zigzag patterns of lace as small rhinestone designs were scattered around the front and back.

The gown paired with Ginny's slim body was overall - stunning.

"Hermione, you look like a zombie who has just been given the gift of life," Lavender giggled.

"I feel like a zombie too," Hermione replied. "You look beautiful in that gown, Gin," she said without too much excitement. "But seriously, can we _please _go eat?"

chuckled. "I have a few more errands to run, dear. Why don't you girls head off to The Three Broomsticks?"

"Sounds like a good plan, Mum," Ginny replied with a wide smile, completely oblivious to Hermione's pained expression. "Let me get changed, and we'll go."

Meanwhile, Mrs. Weasley paid for the wedding dress and left the shop with an enormous bag in her hand.

Lavender turned to Hermione. "Is everything all right? The other day... you seemed distracted during the appointment. Heck, you look like crap right now too."

"Gee, thanks, Lav. I'm fine, really. I've just been having... nightmares lately. They seem so real to me... like they've happened before... but they haven't... at least I don't think they have."

"Does it have anything to do with Malfoy's daughter? You looked really stiff when I mentioned it earlier."

"Not really. There was just some-" Hermione's words were cut short as a cheery Ginny came out of the fitting room and motioned the two witches to follow her out of the front door.

"So what did I miss?" Ginny asked as they walked towards The Three Broomsticks.

"Well, Hermione has been having nightmares that feel like they're real..." Lavender began, motioning Hermione to continue.

"Guys, what happened to Neville Longbottom?" Hermione wondered aloud instead.

* * *

Draco stared at the blank white wall in front of him. A wall that once was full of memories and pictures galore, memories that made it hard for him to swallow without a couple tears streaming down his face. Father would've been disappointed in him, he was turning into an emotional blob... He just couldn't hide himself behind his wall of indifference and pretend that he wasn't severely affected by Pansy's death.

He couldn't believe it. They hadn't even left their relationship on a positive note. She and him had been bloody furious with each other... and now he couldn't apologize. He couldn't do anything. Draco blamed himself. He had heard from several doctors that stress sometimes caused a premature labour... even if she had been cursed... there might have been a way to stop it... there might have been a warning; it could've bought more time.

If he had just taken her to a healer the second she had complained about her stomach pains... maybe she would've been here, with him.

His blood-shot eyes looked down at his feet. The sudden contrast of his black shoes snapped him out of his blame fest.

Barely two feet away lay broken shards of glass and pieces of wood, the result of him slamming each photo frame on the marble floor. Mother would definitely be pissed but he'd deal with that later.

Outside, sat dozens of guests dressed in black for the funeral service and he was sitting here in the endless hallway leading to their room. He just wasn't able to face it. He didn't care that people would talk about him not being at his late wife's funeral. He didn't give a damn about anything.

He'd miss the days when he would wake up and find his wallet a lot lighter than he had left it. But there would be things that he wouldn't miss either... like her snarky attitude in the mornings until she had a cup of coffee. She definitely hadn't been a morning person.

He knew that needed to let go of those thoughts... but how?

He'd put off being a dad long enough. Maybe his daughter could provide a distraction. Wasn't it worth a try at least?

* * *

As he sat on the bench listening to the words of the Clergy, there was a sly smirk on his face. The Dark Lord would be proud of him. He had destroyed Draco's family. That's what he deserved for being infidel to his Lord. Too bad the curse hadn't destroyed the bitch that they had spawned - of course he hadn't realized that there even _was _one inside the Pug-face when he had cast it on her.

He would destroy Draco, no matter what it took. He had taken the spotlight away from him, so his life was merely payback.

Not that he wanted Draco dead. _No. Neveeer. _His inner voice sneered. Where was the fun in pointing his wand at him and yelling '_Avada Kedavra' ?_ He might as well amuse himself.

* * *

_Review!_

_~.dust_


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